Off Topic Politics Thread

Which Edward III started. To which they might reply "he wasn't English he was ****ing French anyway".

 

The ruling classes were all ****ing Normans in those days (as was Jeremy Thorpe)

 

There is absolutely no evidence for French cowardice, and it certainly wasn't a factor when Leclerc headed the liberation of Paris in 1944. At that time the FFI forces took on the German army in the city with little more equipment than the home guard possessed in 1940, some using Blunderbusses.

The real problem in May 1940 was a bit like the Spanish Inquisition - nobody expected them. The Maginot line was considered impregnable, as indeed it was to a normal frontal assault. But it didn't extend through Belgium because that was a neutral country and it was not considered that the beastly boche would violate that.

The real opportunity to stop Hitler was in March1939 when he invaded Czechoslovakia. They were quite well armed with a mountainous country that was very defensible. But Chamberlain made his stand six months too late.

 

Germany could and should have been stopped in 1936 when they marched, illegally, into the Rhineland. They were really only trying it on, as they fully expected the French army to stop them, but the French did nothing, and the rest is terrible, tragic history.

On the blitzkreig in 1940, the French army had the best tanks in the world at the time, but instead of using concentrated armoured columns like the Panzer Divisions, the French used tanks in 2’s and 3’s in support of their infantry. The Germans had coordination between the armour, the infantry, and the Luftwaffe, but neither the French or the British had any coordination at all. It wasn’t cowardice or bad tactics that lost the Battle of France, but poor strategy at the highest level, based, as you say, on the misplaced faith in the Maginot line, and the refusal to believe that tanks could get through the Ardennes.

 

I think you may all be underestimating what an impressive war machine the Wehrmacht was, at every level. Would have reached Moscow in 1941 if winter hadn’t come early and been particularly harsh that year. Took four years for the Red Army, with all the Soviet Union’s almost limitless resources of manpower, to drive them back to Berlin.

 

I wonder if it was because the Left Back Tanks were deployed at Right Back and vice versa

 

You may be onto something - apparently some Austrian bloke kept fooling around with strategy and tactics.

 

With Leclerc in control, I’m shocked the French tanks didn’t overtake all the German ones.

Just shows that you’re only as quick as the tank you drive

 

A bit early to be tanked..............

 

Blimey, things have moved on a bit since last night. I wonder what side Serbia will be on in WW3?

 

A dangerous strategy by the Pfeffel/Cummings axis. The way this is going I can see the tunnel getting shut and us being blockaded. Maybe an auction at Sotheby's for an orange?

 

F*ck China. They are trying to bully any company or country that doesn't kowtow to them. And getting away with it.

If there is one thing to be thankful to Trump for, it's that he recognises China's bullshit.

 

Regarding the British war effort in WW2:

We asked the Indians to give us a hand, but in return the Indian Government asked for independence. The British refused.

In spite of this, the Muslim League (a rival political group to the governing Indian National Congress), asked for volunteers to come forward to help the British war effort.

How many muslim Indians volunteered to help the British? - Two and a half million.

Volunteered. No pay, no nothing.

F*cking muslims.

 

Wow! I didn’t know that. Can’t wait for my next ‘discussion’ with some of my group who have a different view to me on Muslims

 

Yeah it's a beauty is that one. All on Wikipedia too so you're mates can check for themselves if they don't believe.

 

Here's one that is nothing to do with war and history, but is right upto date

Boris Johnson's father praises Extinction Rebellion 'crusties'.
Why? Because Stanley Johnson is a crusty. In response to his Buffoon PM son's comment that Extinction Rebellion protesters were "uncooperative crusties” who should stop blocking the streets of the capital with their “heaving hemp-smelling bivouacs”
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...johnson-extinction-rebellion-protest-crusties

To Buffoon I would point out that if Extinction Rebellion don't block the streets and behave as they do, peacefully, I would add, politicians like you won't take the blindest bit of notice of them, and that it would be a case of "business as usual." Well, the time has long been up for the attitude of "business as usual" to continue.

 

Absolutely, and here’s Pie saying exactly that, but adding it’s OK to be a hypocrite, in the sense that however hard we individually try, we can never be perfect:

 

Interesting opinion piece in the The Guardian. It suggests that the Brexit crisis reflects the UK's real standing in the world: https://www.theguardian.com/comment...-crisis-global-capitalism-britain-place-world

"A determined ignorance of the dynamics of global capitalism is bringing about a long-overdue audit of British realities."

 

Before I view the video, I'll say something about being a climate hypocrite. Everyone is a hypocrite to some extent. The challenge is to reduce the hypocrisy within, along with the impact you make on the planet. People may simply not have the capacity to change, either by financial/health constraints or by a lack of knowledge. If it is the latter, then get yourself aware and start the change once you realise what you can do. If it is both, then at least make yourself aware so that you can make a change/changes when/if it becomes possible.

Being ignorant of human induced climate change is not an excuse that you can get away with. It doesn't stop you from being the biggest of hypocrites when the information is out here at your fingertips. It's not enough that "the government will do something." You don't need to know everything, but it certainly helps if you know the basics. And indulging in more "ramming opinion down peoples' throats" I'm going to suggest you do get to know them. And make it a high priority.

 

Having seen the video, Jonathan Pie [Tom Walker] is right about The Guardian being too middle class in their reporting. I would say that at least TG brings attention to HICC, like many others don't at all, except to criticise [apologies to The Independent readers], because they are in the ownership of people who profit from selling the story of "business as usual."

And talking about The Independent, here's a viewpoint that Brexit would make Britain's challenge to becoming a zero-carbon and sustainable economy harder. Which might be kind of obvious to some, but not to one or two others: https://www.independent.co.uk/voice...climate-crisis-final-say-brexit-a9148826.html